Tech

Spotify Serendipity Maps People Playing the Same Song at the Same Time

Spotify already tells users what their friends are listening to. Now it's expanding that idea to international proportions, thanks to a new tool.

Serendipity records where and when at least two people start playing the same song within a tenth of a second of each other. The map quickly zooms in on the two users and plays the song for a few seconds — then, it's off to the next pairing.

Artist Kyle McDonald developed the idea after talking with friends about the feeling of isolation between people in the modern world, despite the fact that their every movement online is tracked by the devices they use.

"I was thinking about these connections that maybe we're not aware of," Kyle McDonald told Mashable. "These things are sorting and categorizing us all the time and we don't see it."

The program collects data from Spotify profiles using Storm, a program that relays real time analytics back to a host. McDonald then mapped the data using d3.js, the same tool used by organizations like the New York Times to display interactive data.

The project was developed during McDonald's stint as Spotify's inaugural media artist in residence, which ends this week. His work is largely based around the blending of coding and music. Spotify is considering ways to expand and integrate Serendipity into how users play and share music, McDonald said, but nothing concrete has been determined yet.

Spotify's Top 25 Under 25

1. Avicii

The 24-year-old DJ is Spotify's first artist under 25 to cross the one billion streams threshold. His song "Wake Me Up" is the streaming service's most-played tack, with more than 240 million streams globally.

2. Lorde

Though Spotify listeners were streaming the 17-yea-old pop star's single "Royals" long before it hit mainstream charts, her follow-up single "Team" is on a hot streak with more than 80 million streams and counting.

3. Miley Cyrus

Spotify listeners stream Miley's music more than 1.5 million times a day. The service has seen a near 50/50 split between genders for the pop star's top hit singles, "We Can't Stop" and "Wrecking Ball."

4. One Direction

These U.K. heartthrobs get more than one million streams globally each day. And if you incorrectly assumed that Harry, Liam, Louis, Niall and Zayne are only hits with the ladies, consider than nearly half the listeners of their single "Story of My Life" are men.

5. Taylor Swift

Though the queen of country-pop crossovers is 24, her lyrics read like a post from your teenage LiveJournal blog. Though Swift's last album "Red" was released in late 2012, her music still enjoys about 400,000 streams per day in the U.S., and twice that globally.

6. Jason Derulo

If you've listened to top 40 radio in the last few months, then you've likely fallen under the spell of Derulo's top charting single "Talk Dirty." The horn-heavy track has been one of Spotify's top performing tracks this year, coming in at more than 120 million streams. His latest single "Wiggle" featuring Snoop Dogg is gaining traction in the U.S.

7. Ariana Grande

The 20-year-old pop diva is well on her way to becoming the next Mariah Carey, with her high-reaching notes and dazzling live performances. Her latest single "Problem" featuring Iggy Azealia is a hit on Spotify.

8. Hunter Hayes

The 22 year-old country singer recently broke the Guinness World Record for the most concerts played in the most cities in 24 hours. His latest single "Invisible" reaches listeners with its anti-bullying stance and heartening delivery.

10. Iggy Azealia

11. Justin Bieber

Though the Bieb's image is far from flawless as of late, Spotify's young listeners are still streaming his music more than 800,000 times a day. His top track on the service is "Beauty and the Beat" followed closely by "As Long as Your Love Me."

13. Birdy

14. YG

Though buzz has been building for the Compton MC since 2009, the 24-year-old's major label debut album "My Krazy Life" sent him to the top of the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. U.S. listeners have taken to his single "Who Do You Love," featuring Drake.

18. Phillip Phillips

This American Idol-winning Georgia native garnered 50 million streams with his singles "Home" and "Gone, Gone, Gone." His latest album "Behind the Light" is also gaining popularity with Spotify listeners.

20. Disclosure

Spotify listeners have streamed this EDM producer duo's dance hit "Latch" (featuring Sam Smith) more than 40 million times. The service has also seen a spike in streams since the young DJs performed at Coachella in April.

24. Joey Bada$$

25. Sky Ferreira

Though she's been building her music career since she was 14, the 21-year-old finally released her debut album "Night Time, My Time" in late 2013. Her gritty pop style's gained attention from US and UK listeners, and from Miley Cyrus, who invited Ferreira on her Bangerz Tour as an opening act.

Mashable
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